Ezra 6

1 Then Darius the king made a decree, and search was made in the house of the archives, where the treasures were laid up in Babylon.

Thus King Darius ordered that a search be made of the archives that were housed in the treasury of Babylon.

2 And there was found at Achmetha, in the palace that is in the province of Media, a roll, and therein was thus written for a record:

But it was actually in the fortress of Ecbatana, in the province of Media, that a scroll was found, recording the following:

3 In the first year of Cyrus the king, Cyrus the king made a decree: Concerning the house of God at Jerusalem, let the house be builded, the place where they offer sacrifices, and let the foundations thereof be strongly laid; the height thereof threescore cubits, and the breadth thereof threescore cubits;

In the first year of King Cyrus, he issued a decree regarding God's Temple in Jerusalem: Let the Temple be rebuilt as a place where sacrifices are offered, and make sure it has strong foundations are firm. Make it sixty cubits high and sixty cubits wide,

4 with three courses of great stones, and a course of new timber: and let the expenses be given out of the king’s house.

with three layers of stone blocks and one of timber. Expenses are to be paid from the royal treasury.

5 And also let the gold and silver vessels of the house of God, which Nebuchadnezzar took forth out of the temple which is at Jerusalem, and brought unto Babylon, be restored, and brought again unto the temple which is at Jerusalem, every one to its place; and thou shalt put them in the house of God.

In addition, the gold and silver items of God's Temple, which Nebuchadnezzar took from the Temple in Jerusalem and brought to Babylon, must also be returned to the Temple in Jerusalem and placed there.

6 Now therefore, Tattenai, governor beyond the River, Shethar-bozenai, and your companions the Apharsachites, who are beyond the River, be ye far from thence:

These are my instructions to you, Tattenai, governor of the province west of the Euphrates, Shethar-bozenai, and your fellow officials, and officials of the province: Stay far away from there!

7 let the work of this house of God alone; let the governor of the Jews and the elders of the Jews build this house of God in its place.

This work on God's Temple—leave it alone! Let the governor and leaders of the Jews continue with rebuilding this Temple of God on its original site.

8 Moreover I make a decree what ye shall do to these elders of the Jews for the building of this house of God: that of the king’s goods, even of the tribute beyond the River, expenses be given with all diligence unto these men, that they be not hindered.

Furthermore, this is my decree as to what you are to do for these Jewish leaders regarding the rebuilding of this Temple of God. The full expense involved is to be paid from royal income, the tribute of the province west of the Euphrates, so that the work will not be delayed.

9 And that which they have need of, both young bullocks, and rams, and lambs, for burnt-offerings to the God of heaven; [also] wheat, salt, wine, and oil, according to the word of the priests that are at Jerusalem, let it be given them day by day without fail;

Provide whatever is needed by the priests in Jerusalem: young bulls, rams, and lambs for burnt offerings to the God of heaven, and wheat, salt, wine, and olive oil. Make sure to give them this each day without fail.

10 that they may offer sacrifices of sweet savor unto the God of heaven, and pray for the life of the king, and of his sons.

In this way they can offer sacrifices that are acceptable to the God of heaven, and pray for the lives of the king and his sons.

11 Also I have made a decree, that whosoever shall alter this word, let a beam be pulled out from his house, and let him be lifted up and fastened thereon; and let his house be made a dunghill for this:

Further I declare that if any man interferes with this decree, a beam is to be ripped from his house and set in the ground, and he is to be impaled on top of it. His own house shall be turned into a pile of rubble for disobeying this decree.

12 and the God that hath caused his name to dwell there overthrow all kings and peoples that shall put forth their hand to alter [the same], to destroy this house of God which is at Jerusalem. I Darius have made a decree; let it be done with all diligence.

May God who chose the city of Jerusalem as the place where he would be honored, destroy any king or people who try to alter what I have said or who destroy this Temple. I, Darius, issue this decree. Let it be faithfully carried out.

13 Then Tattenai, the governor beyond the River, Shethar-bozenai, and their companions, because that Darius the king had sent, did accordingly with all diligence.

Tattenai, the governor of the province west of the Euphrates, Shethar-bozenai, and their fellow officials faithfully carried out what King Darius had decreed.

14 And the elders of the Jews builded and prospered, through the prophesying of Haggai the prophet and Zechariah the son of Iddo. And they builded and finished it, according to the commandment of the God of Israel, and according to the decree of Cyrus, and Darius, and Artaxerxes king of Persia.

As a result the Jewish leaders continued building, and they were encouraged by the messages from Haggai the prophet and Zechariah, son of Iddo. They completed building the Temple following the command of the God of Israel, and the decrees of Cyrus, Darius, and Artaxerxes, kings of Persia.

15 And this house was finished on the third day of the month Adar, which was in the sixth year of the reign of Darius the king.

The Temple was completed on the third day of the month of Adar, in the sixth year of the reign of King Darius.

16 And the children of Israel, the priests and the Levites, and the rest of the children of the captivity, kept the dedication of this house of God with joy.

Then the people of Israel, the priests, the Levites, and the rest of those who had returned from exile, all joyfully celebrated the dedication of the God's Temple.

17 And they offered at the dedication of this house of God a hundred bullocks, two hundred rams, four hundred lambs; and for a sin-offering for all Israel, twelve he-goats, according to the number of the tribes of Israel.

To dedicate God's Temple they sacrificed one hundred bulls, two hundred rams, four hundred lambs, and a sin offering for the whole of Israel comprising twelve male goats, one for each Israelite tribe.

18 And they set the priests in their divisions, and the Levites in their courses, for the service of God, which is at Jerusalem; as it is written in the book of Moses.

They organized the priests and Levites by their divisions to serve God in the Temple at Jerusalem, in accordance with the Book of Moses.

19 And the children of the captivity kept the passover upon the fourteenth [day] of the first month.

The exiles who had returned observed the Passover on the fourteenth day of the first month.

20 For the priests and the Levites had purified themselves together; all of them were pure: and they killed the passover for all the children of the captivity, and for their brethren the priests, and for themselves.

The priests and Levites had all purified themselves so that they were clean according to the ceremonial law. So they killed the Passover lamb for all the exiles who had returned, for their fellow priests, and for themselves.

21 And the children of Israel that were come again out of the captivity, and all such as had separated themselves unto them from the filthiness of the nations of the land, to seek Jehovah, the God of Israel, did eat,

The Passover was eaten by the people of Israel who had returned from exile, and by those who had joined them and had rejected the pagan practices of the peoples of the land in order to worship the Lord, the God of Israel.

22 and kept the feast of unleavened bread seven days with joy: for Jehovah had made them joyful, and had turned the heart of the king of Assyria unto them, to strengthen their hands in the work of the house of God, the God of Israel.

Then they observed the Festival of Unleavened Bread for seven days. Everyone throughout the land was so happy because the Lord had made the king of Assyria favorable to them, helping them to rebuild the Temple of God, the God of Israel.